US approves cheap version of HIV prevention shot

The US Food and Drug Administration has given tentative approval to Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories to produce a generic version of lenacapavir, a twice-yearly HIV prevention injection. According to STAT News, the company plans to begin shipping the medicine next month. The approval is seen as a step toward widening access for many low- and middle-income countries.

The injectable drug is described by STAT News as a potentially game-changing tool for eradicating HIV because it offers virtually complete protection against contracting the virus with a single administration every six months. The annual cost per person for the generic version is expected to be $40, which STAT News notes is comparable to the cost of daily tablets.

The brand-name version of the drug, known as Yetzugo in the U.S., is marketed by Gilead Sciences and received FDA approval last year. Punch and IOL both report that the approval of this low-cost version brings the breakthrough drug closer to markets in low-income and middle-income countries.

Brief written by urgent.news from Punch, Punch Nigeria, STAT News, IOL — 4 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.